


Grophet's Gambit - Tatooine III

by DancingHare



Category: Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-27
Updated: 2018-03-27
Packaged: 2019-04-13 15:58:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14115825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DancingHare/pseuds/DancingHare
Summary: Some mysterious arrivals cause trouble for the crew.





	Grophet's Gambit - Tatooine III

The chill desert air was a welcome change from the scorching heat of the day. Two of the planet’s three moons kept watch in the sky, and the winds had ceased, for the time being. Kazta’s head ached, both from the heat and all of the arguing. Some of it was her fault. Two jedi had found her way into the compound, and instead of following her first instinct to send them away, Kazta had allowed them shelter. They looked harmless enough, two male humans in their non-descript brown robes, and hadn’t she herself suggested that jedi might be useful, just days ago? They were intolerable to listen to, but not dangerous, or so she’d believed. But when Shani had arrived unexpectedly, the younger jedi had drawn on her, like a jumpy recruit with his first blaster. Understandably shaken, she sent them on their way, but they soon returned, claiming to want to assist in finding the captain. Kazta was surprised how easily Shani relented, especially after she confessed her own distaste for working with jedi. Still, they claimed to be hunting sith in the desert, and they could very well be involved in what the crew was looking for. Kazta just hoped she wouldn’t have to endure too many more monologues about the Force.

Shani had also revealed that the captain had a tracker on his person, showing a faint trace that gave a general idea of his location. The jedi girl immediately wanted to go to its location, despite the odds, to try to rescue him. On one hand, Kazta wished that they’d been told earlier, but she could understand why Shani had withheld the information — she expected that the girl would react accordingly, and she did. Nothing about their mission had really changed, they would do their best to gather what intel they could about Gin’s location and what kind of vessel might be carrying him. Only then would they be prepared to stage a rescue. At the same time, Kazta could sympathize with the girl. She could only imagine how she’d feel if it was someone that she cared about being captured and beaten on an enemy vessel. Still, what else might Shani be keeping hidden, did she have more cards yet to play?

Kazta shook the sand out of her rug and settled into her tent. It was the same one that the jedi had chosen to cook at, and the aroma of roasted meat still hung in the air. She checked her holo and frowned. Still nothing from Kif — about what she had expected. If he’d run off, she’d track him down and drag him back herself if she had to. Instead, she checked in on her apartment in Coruscant. Refugees had poured into the capital following the attacks by the Eternal Empire, and many private citizens had opened their doors to them. Seeing as she was rarely home, Kazta was one of them, allowing a handful of jedi students displaced from Tython to stay and study in her extra room. Whenever she called, she expected to see the room in shambles, but they were quietly studying or meditating. The one who always answered the holo was a young cathar named Xarlo, and Kazta had to admit that he wasn’t too bad, for a jedi.

“Oh, hello Major!”

“You’re up late, aren’t you?” she asked. “How is everything?”

“Am I? Oh, I lost track of time. I was just watching these holos that we found at the library. Everything’s good! What about your mission, are you allowed to say?”

Kazta smiled faintly and shook her head. He always asked, though the answer was always the same. “Afraid not, sorry. It’s hot though. So everyone’s okay?”

His expression fell just a little. “I uh… might have damaged a vase when I was practicing. But the droid said it was okay. It’s just a little mark.”

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

Xarlo exhaled a relieved breath. “Okay, then everything’s good.”

She closed the connection and began her nightly routine, disassembling and cleaning all of her armor and equipment. It took time to do properly, but she could do it with her eyes closed at this point, allowing her time to wind down and let her thoughts go where they may. Tonight, she wondered what she would do in the jedi girl’s place, if it was her mother or father, or a squadmate in danger. Logically, she knew the correct answer, but it could be difficult to ignore your emotions in a situation like that. But wasn’t that why jedi were supposed to avoid such attachments, so they could remain impartial? Kazta wasn’t sure. She wondered, too, if her boarders would be sent out here to this harsh place. They seemed far too soft and innocent for this planet, though maybe it would harden them, as it had herself and her fellow recruits. But maybe that wasn’t a good thing, maybe the galaxy needed more softness sometimes.

Kazta saw Kif slinking back to his tent, and even from afar she could see that things hadn’t gone as planned. He looked defeated, like a kicked akk dog. She considered talking to him about it, but he probably wasn’t in the mood, and whatever she said would probably only make things worse.


End file.
